Project A
by ShinyCDiver
Summary: It's Documentary, but with Aqours. The first chapter is the prologue explaining their situation and the differences in characters from LL Sunshine, and each chapter afterwards will coincide with an actual episode of the anime. Being Revised.
1. Prologue

**I clearly have my priorities straight. Between college, unfinished stories and this...I chose this.**

 **No Love Live Movie Documentary yet but the Aqours version is starting now!**

 **This is the prologue.**

 **I was going to call this Starlight TV, you know, to contrast with their Sunshine, but I decided to go with Project A after I made Dia say it in the story.**

 **So yeah.**

 **Here we go.**

 **Oh, and as with Documentary, the characters are out of character like 90% of the time. Just a warning.**

 **Here we go. For real this time.**

* * *

Within the gymnasium of Uranohoshi Girls' High School, there exists a clubroom sandwiched between the other clubrooms. It's doorway on the inside of the gymnasium is blocked up by boxes, and from the outside hallway, cardboard is plastered against the windows so no one could see inside. It is rumored that a secret cult gathers there, as students trying to enter were either met with silence or a soft voice asking for the password.

"Ugh...three more requests to use this room today, and I had to deny all of them again." Dia muttered, resting her head down on the table. The room was constantly in a state of dim light, which was quite relaxing.

"Good work keeping this place locked up then." Kanan said, patting her friend gently on the back. As the student council president, Dia was the main reason they were able to keep the room to themselves. No club activity went on in this room; it was just kept blocked up so they could have a space at school to rest when they wanted to.

"Keep it down. I'm trying to memorize this speech." Mari chastised the two of them, even though neither of the other third years had raised their voices. She was planning on taking over as the school headmistress, to make sure that they would no longer have any issues with their usage of this room. The current head of the school had called Dia out once before for abusing her power to keep the clubroom closed to other potential (and probably more legitimate) clubs. "If I can get the approval from the government, then we'll be in complete control of what goes on at this school."

"Which means we'll get use of this school until we graduate-maybe even keep it for Chika and Ruby to use!" Kanan bounced excitedly. She had no power in the school system, unlike both Dia and Mari, but she fully supported whatever they were doing. There was a knock on the hallway door, and all three looked in that direction. Kanan walked over to the doorway. "Password?"

"Shining Stars on Me." Kanan double-checked with Dia to make sure that the password she heard was the correct one for the day and let the other person in. "Hello, onee-chan!" Ruby immediately jumped onto her older sister and hugged her tightly, much to Dia's obvious displeasure. But the third year was in no mood to shoot down her sister and kept her head down on the table as Ruby proceeded to braid her hair, all while chattering aimlessly about her day.

"Hanamaru-chan isn't with you today?" Kanan asked, taking a seat across from Dia.

"She and Yoshiko-chan have classroom duty, so they'll be around later!" Ruby informed her. "I already told them today's password, so they shouldn't have any problem getting in later." The first year finished braiding the left half of Dia's hair and moved over to start on the right side.

"I'm kinda surprised Chika-chi isn't here yet." Mari commented. Apparently she had decided to take a break from memorizing her speech.

"Yeah, it is a bit strange." Dia added, sitting up at last. Ruby quickly adjusted her position while still braiding her older sister's hair. "You isn't here either. Aren't they normally the first to show up after Kanan does?" Kanan thought she was rather tolerant of her younger sister's antics, especially as Ruby was now attempting to wind the two braids into a single bun.

"Maybe they got held up by something!" Ruby suggested. "Like classroom duty." At that moment, though, they heard footsteps charging down the outside hallway, followed shortly by a pounding at the room's door. Kanan went over to the door again.

"Password?" She asked.

"We don't have time for that, Kanan-chan!" Chika's distraught voice came to them through the door. "You-chan's in a fight with the new transfer student! Come help me break it up!"

"A transfer student?" Kanan repeated, casting a glance at Dia. The other third year hadn't mentioned anything related to a transfer student coming into their school

"She seemed like a nice person when she came to take a look at the school; I didn't think she would cause any problems." Dia stood up as she spoke. She deftly undid whatever Ruby had done to her hair-ignoring Ruby's soft whine of disappointment-and straightened it back out. "But we'd better go look."

"I'll come too." Mari folded up her speech and put the page away in her skirt pocket. "Ruby-chan, can you watch the room? Let Hanamaru-chan and Yohane-chan in when they come, but don't let anyone else in." The first year nodded. It was rare that she got the responsibility of keeping their club room private; usually only the third years controlled the door.

Chika backed up as the door opened. Kanan slipped out, followed closely by Dia and Mari. The door shut quietly behind them, once again making the club room look like it was blocked up. "Hurry, this way!" Chika sped-walked down the hallway. Even in her hurry, it wouldn't do good for all four of them to run down the hallway, especially not with the student council president and future school head trailing after her. The entirety of the second year class had exited the classroom, but they milled around the door, unsure of what to do.

"Step aside. Let us through." Dia took the lead now. The crowd parted to let the four students through to the door, which stood ajar.

You slammed the other student into the teacher's podium, watching her groan in pain with a satisfied expression. But the transfer student wasn't done yet; she tackled You into the desks that were in the front row. They went down, crashing loudly amongst the desks that fell with them. You, upon hitting the floor, flipped the other girl over so that she was pinning her down, both hands on the transfer student's throat. The girl gave a strangled cry as she tried to relieve the pressure on her neck.

Kanan pushed past Dia and entered the room. She grabbed You by the back of her shirt and pulled her off of her opponent. "What the heck, You?" You hung limply in Kanan's grasp.

"It's not my fault. She insulted Chika-chan first. She tried to knock Chika-chan out the window!" Kanan passed You to Mari once the blonde had joined them and knelt down to the other girl's level. She was still catching her breath, her hand on her throat as if reassuring herself that no lasting damage had been done. Then, as if just realizing she was being watched, the girl looked at Kanan warily. "Bi-mmph!" Mari clapped a hand over You's mouth, preventing her from continuing whatever she had been in the process of saying.

"Here." Kanan held her hand out to the transfer student. The girl looked at her, then took her hand. Her grip was strong, passing along the message that she would retaliate if Kanan attacked her. Kanan stood up, pulling the girl up with her. "What's your name?"

"...Sakurauchi...Riko." Riko mumbled, drawing her hand back from Kanan. Her uniform had become dirtied from the brawl, and she made some half-hearted attempts to brush the dirt off. "I didn't do anything to Takami-san. She's lying." Kanan was more inclined to believe You at the moment, since she had known her longer, but decided against saying anything to incite more conflict.

"Dia, what's your thoughts on this? Council room?" Mari dragged You over to the other third year, her hand still firmly clamped on the second year's mouth.

"Yes." Dia turned to the rest of the second year students, who were milling around the hallway, waiting for some instruction. "Sorry, but can you clean up the classroom?"

"Yes! We'll make it so neat you won't be able to tell that something happened!" One of the second years responded eagerly. Dia smiled and walked off down the hallway, amidst stares from the students. Near the back of the crowd, Chika tried to make her escape from the scene before she got roped back up into it. As Dia passed her, she reached out and grabbed the second year by her shirt, towing her along to their destination.

"Kanan, Mari, let's go." Kanan and Mari exchanged looks over their respective captives. Dia had already gone far ahead of them, and her saying this was strangely amusing to the both of them. Mari left first, pushing You in front of her. Kanan followed shortly after, with Riko trailing slightly behind her.

Dia knocked on the clubroom door, one hand holding tightly to the second year trying to flee. No response came, and she sighed. "Shining Stars on Me." A few seconds passed, during which Mari and Kanan joined her with their second year packages, before the door cracked open. Dia pushed her way in, forcing Yoshiko to back up as the six girls entered the room. Forcing Chika to the other side of the room so she wouldn't be able to escape, Dia turned to her little sister. "What happened to minding the door?"

"I did! I let Hanamaru-chan and Yoshiko-chan in and then we figured that you'd probably have the key and we should just keep quiet!" Ruby complained, momentarily taking her attention off the tablet she had brought to school. Dia stared at the electronic device pointedly until Ruby got the message and put it away with a dissatisfied sigh. "So what's going on? Who's she?"

Riko was still standing at the doorway. "This isn't the student council room." She said, looking around at the boxes piled on the other end of the room.

"Of course not. This is our council room. And we'll be deciding your punishment here, both of you." Dia addressed both Riko and You when she spoke. "After hearing from Chika, of course." The girl froze up when her name was mentioned. Chika turned around, fear evident on her features.

"It was all Sakurauchi-san's fault." You repeated. "She threatened Chika-chan so I had to take action."

"I did nothing of the sort. You attacked me for no reason." Riko retorted immediately. Mari quickly stepped between them, blocking their view of each other.

"We're not getting anywhere with that. Chika, you have to tell us what happened." Chika reluctantly nodded, sinking down into a chair as if her fate had been sealed. Slowly, she told them what happened.

* * *

Class had just ended. You walked over to Chika's desk, ready to leave for the clubroom. The other second year was still putting her things away, but the two of them eagerly talked about the topic that had been the main focus of their 'club' for the last week. Riko, sitting in the seat next to Chika's, had overheard and asked them about it.

"Sorry, this is secret between me and Chika-chan only." You told her.

"Then keep it that way, and don't bring it up if you don't want others to hear." Riko shot back, standing up from her desk. She crossed the short distance between her desk and Chika's, and Chika had stood up as well, her back against the window.

"Oi, what are you doing?" You watched as Riko leaned closer to Chika, planting her hand on the glass. She was ready to interrupt if any danger came.

"You want to be a school idol?" Riko asked, getting a nod from Chika. "Hmph, you don't look like you have the guts to do anything but cower."

"Leave her alone." You grabbed Riko's arm, forcing the other second year to look at her. "You're new, so leave now and I won't hurt you."

"Like I care. She won't be the last victim." And at that point, You snapped, slapping Riko across the face. Chika had then run off to find Kanan.

* * *

"No matter how I look at it...Sakurauchi-san is at fault." Kanan said; all eyes were now on the redhead. She crossed her arms defiantly at the verdict.

"I agree with that sentiment, but we cannot deny that it was You that threw the first punch of the fight." Dia didn't even look interested in the judgement anymore. She was looking at pictures on her phone, occasionally lifting it up so that Ruby could see. The first year was styling her older sister's hair once again. "Oh, I got the ideal punishment for Sakurauchi-san. We need a ninth member for Project A, right?"

"I thought that project was going to be cancelled." Yoshiko said, looking over at her. Hanamaru made some muffled noise, unable to speak because of the tape over her mouth. "I told you not to put duct tape on your face!" She peeled it off carefully, trying her best not to hurt Hanamaru in the process.

"We're going to shine zura! Project Angel!" Hanamaru shouted, bouncing up and down.

"It's Project Aqours, you idiot." Yoshiko corrected her. She then grabbed the other first year and forced her to sit down. After a moment of reflection, she put the roll of duct tape away in her school bag.

"It was. That's why I'm going to take over as school head and get it approved." Mari said, looking smug at her brilliant plan.

"I thought it was so we could keep using this room."

"That too."

"Anyway," Dia interrupted the off-topic discussion. "I propose that we make Sakurauchi-san work with us as the ninth member as punishment."

"Hang on!" You slammed her hands down on the table in her haste to get her point across. "Why should any of us have anything to do with her?"

"And why should I help you with your project?" Riko and You glared at each other, but they seemed to come to a mutual understanding at the same time.

"I object to this!" Both girls shouted at the same time.

"Wow~ Their harmony is amazing zura!"

"You know what? Just stop talking." Yoshiko handed Hanamaru her phone and watched her cautiously tap at the screen.

"You don't get to decide! You, you're getting punished as well, for starting the fight." Dia was abusing her power again, and everyone in the room knew it. But no one dared say anything against the third year. "Project A will proceed and Sakurauchi-san will be joining us! Is that understood?"

"Yes…"

* * *

A week later, Mari had taken over the position as the school head. Riko and You cleaned up the club room while complaining loudly about how unfair it was that they had to work together to clean up while the rest of the group was off doing whatever it was that they were doing. And the character settings for each of the group was handed out.

"It's no good. She's in a state of shock." Kanan gave up trying to get Chika to come back to them after getting no response for the last minute. The second year was shy by nature, so her position in the project as the group's leader came as an unwelcome surprise. "I'm not too far off from doing the same thing as she is though." Her family did run a scuba-diving tour, but Kanan did not participate in the actual diving. Instead, she spent more time running the business side of the tour, with her phobia of water preventing her from going any further than ankle deep water. According to the tentative script they had been sent, however, she would be spending more time in water than out of it. "Marii….Diaaaa…"

"We'll hold your hand if we can." Mari said reassuringly. "I think my role and your role should have been switched, Dia."

"I agree." Dia shuddered at the thought of being the strict student council president. Not to say that she wasn't naturally, but she didn't like the idea of having to be stern on the younger students. On top of that, Mari was the more serious one between the two of them. Yet, their character settings stated that Dia would have to be more serious. "There's nothing we can do, though."

"Why do I have middle school syndrome?! It should be Zuramaru that has it! She has it!" Yoshiko pointed at Hanamaru to emphasize her point. The other first year wasn't even paying attention; her interest had been captured by the basketball team that was currently doing practice in the gym. "She doesn't even know what's going on! Ugh!"

"At least you don't have to pretend to get scared every time someone approaches you." Ruby sighed. "My part would have been better suited for Chika-chan, not me."

"Hey, what do you have to do, Riko-chan?" You asked, peering over the other girl's shoulder to read the paper she held. "Oh, that's not too hard. I totally thought you were like that at the beginning too."

"Let me see yours too." Riko looked at the paper You held up for her to read. "Yeah, that totally suits you too."

Kanan watched the two second years chat about what they were going to do with their roles in the scripts with a bit of confusion. "When and how did they get that friendly with each other after nearly beating each other up a week ago?"

"I think they're main characters of a manga or something. 'Fight enough and you become friends'...or something like that." Dia shrugged it off like it was not a big enough problem that she should deal with. "It's probably better that they're not fighting anymore. Riko's fitting in with everyone else too."

"No, they still fight." Chika had returned to them at last. She looked tired. "They fight almost every day when we go home together. Uu...I don't want to do this at all…"

* * *

 **A very reluctant Chika is forced into the center position of the TV show, Project A! What will become of their newly formed group next episode?**

 **Riko and You having fist fights are probably going to be a major thing during this story.**

 **Also, please check out the poll on my profile page to select which members will be doing the opening corner to answer questions! :D**


	2. I Want to Shine!

Mari: By popular demand of the readers, we will be taking over position as the intro for each chapter.

Dia: 'Popular demand'? We literally had one vote. And we were tied, with the second years.

Mari: Popular demand.

Dia: …

Kanan: L-Let's just get started on reading the reviews they left for us! Um, first, from _WeebVirus_. They seem quite surprised that you're serious this time around, Mari.

Mari: Someone has to be. Look at Dia.

Dia: What? *playing SIF on her phone*

Mari: See? How can anything be left to her? I have to do something.

Kanan: Please say something in your own defense, Dia.

Dia: There's nothing to say. I leave it all up to Ma- For f***'s sake! How do I keep missing this one note?!

Mari: We're going to ignore her *Kanan nods* and move on. To _lychee-ran_ , our Chika's shyness is a bit more annoying than you'd think. You'll see why in this chapter. There is nothing to report on pairings so far.

Kanan: KananMari? Oh, it sounds like calamari!

Mari: That's nice, Kanan.

Dia: Incest is wrong. I let Ruby play with my hair, but that doesn't mean we'll get paired together.

Mari: So you were listening.

Dia: You told me to do something. So I am. And also, I ran out of LP again.

Mari: *sighs* Read the next review then.

Dia: Got it. It's from _Revengermajestyliberator._ I don't know. I mean, it's supposed to be ChikaRiko, right?

Kanan: Chika-chan and Riko-chan do get along rather well considering their first meeting. Though, You-chan and Chika-chan have been friends for much longer.

Mari: But You-chan and Riko-chan interact with each other a lot more often.

Dia: In short, we have no clue. Those three are in a confusing triangle. *the other two nod*

Kanan: The next review relates to that as well. _iamrailgun.20_ also thinks that You-chan's and Riko-chan's bickering is cute.

Dia: Maybe we should put some serious thought into this. I'll ask Ruby what she thinks and give an answer next time around.

Mari: Yes, do that. Kanan and I will be thinking about this too. We'll report our findings on the second years next chapter. But before we end off, we have one final review to read. Dia?

Dia: Okay. Last review is from _chi2lyn_. All they said was 'interesting' though whether this refers to the story or the character designs is unclear.

Kanan: It seems that we will have a lot of things to talk about next chapter.

Mari: By the way, Kanan, there have been rumors that you'll be replacing Chika-chi as the character tagged for this work. Mainly because you have become the main voice of the story. Would you care to elaborate on that?

Kanan: I-I have no idea what you're talking about…

Dia: *standing in front of a curtain labeled 'censored'* This concludes the first session of our intro sequence before the chapter. We still don't have a name for this segment, so if you could provide us with one, that would be appreciated. Otherwise, Mari will have to agree with my suggestion of calling it 'Third Year Corner.' See you next time.

* * *

The film crew had shown up on campus. Mari, with her position as the head of the school, and Dia, as the student council president, met with them to discuss what they were supposed to do first for their new project. Kanan was also with them, but she doesn't have a special position to be noted.

"Kanan, can you give the scripts to Chika-chi and the other second years?" Mari handed the other third year four stapled script books. "They're all named; yours is in there too."

"Sure! Then we meet up at the club room, right?" At Mari's nod, Kanan set off with the scripts. She entered the school building, passing the students heading towards their club activities, and up the staircase to the second floor. The door to the second year classroom that she was headed towards was open, and she could already hear bickering taking place.

"I said that I could clean the chalkboard!" You shouted. Kanan peered into the room. You clutched the handle of the broom she was holding tightly as she glared at the student she was shouting at.

"I'm taller than you so it's easier this way!" Riko retorted. The chalkboard eraser was in her hands. It was covered in yellow dust, and Kanan could see that she had already cleaned off most of the board.

"But you cough every time dust falls on you! It's annoying; that's why I should have done it!" Kanan sighed; there was no helping the two of them. She rattled the door as she walked in, getting both girls' attention. "Oh...Uh...hello, Kanan. What brings you here?"

"Scripts. I'm supposed to deliver them to you. Here." Kanan gave each of them their respective script books before looking around at the rest of the classroom. "...that's strange. Where's Chika-chan?" The missing second year was nowhere to be seen.

"She said she'd go ahead first and tell you that the two of us have classroom duty." Riko put her script down on the teacher's podium and turned back to the chalkboard as she talked. She knocked the eraser on the board, falling into a coughing fit as the dust floated off into the air.

"Jeez! Just give that to me!" You stormed over to RIko and snatched the eraser out of her hand. She replaced it with the broom she had previously been holding. "Stand to the side and wait 'til I finish so you can sweep it up!"

"Fine!" Riko snapped, walking off to the back of the classroom with the broom. She stood there, gently sweeping at...nothing in particular. It seemed she was actually taking You into consideration by staying out of the way. Regardless, Kanan still needed to give Chika her script, and the two present second years didn't seem like they would be of any use.

"Wait." You and Riko looked at her again. "You said that Chika-chan left ahead of you?"

"Yeah. She said she'd head there first. The clubroom, I mean." You answered her simply. Riko nodded in agreement. Kanan thought about it. It was strange behavior for Chika to leave before the other two. Before Riko transferred in, if You was stuck with cleaning duty, Chika would wait for her rather than going alone. For her to do that now was definitely strange.

"You-chan. Riko-chan. I need you two to stage a fight." Both second years looked at her as if she had gone crazy. What she had just asked them to do was rather strange, and she tried to explain it as simply as she possibly could. "We're going to start filming today, hence the scripts. Chika-chan might be trying to escape before anyone notices."

"I can see her doing that, but what good would making us fight do?" You asked.

"I don't quite understand either. Wouldn't Chika-chan already be gone if she wanted to run away from this?" Riko also raised a fairly important point. There was the chance that Chika would have left the campus by this time. If she was running home, that is.

"The bus doesn't come for another ten minutes. If she hears that you're fighting, even if she wants to go home, wouldn't she come rushing back to stop you? Or at least, find one of us to come help her stop you?" You and Riko looked at each other, then back at Kanan. They nodded, moving quickly to finish their cleaning and to put their equipment away.

Kanan stood at the window of the second year classroom. The two girls had moved locations to the open courtyard so that it would be easier for word to spread about their fight. With luck, they would be able to draw Chika back in.

"There's a lot of students staring at us." Riko murmured, glancing around at the people walking around. She was a bit nervous.

"Let's give them a show then. Shall we?" You cracked her knuckles. She was always ready for a fight, whether it was staged or on purpose. She turned to the building behind her and waved. Kanan waved in response, and she returned her attention to her opponent. The third year would be on her way back to Dia and Mari with the scripts, where they would be waiting to capture Chika. "Riko-chan, I didn't think it would come to this. But we have no other choice."

"I know...I didn't think this would be the result either...but how dare you say that peanut butter cookies are the best?!" Riko charged, throwing a punch at You's face.

"What would you say, huh?! Something pansy like chocolate chip cookies? Or sugar cookies?!" You blocked the attack and returned with one of her own. Riko caught it with ease, bringing her knee up at the same time to hit You in the stomach.

"Hell no! It's gotta be oatmeal raisin cookies all the way!" As You fell back, winded, Riko advanced on her confidently. You waited until she drew closer, then launched a sudden tackle at the other second year. Riko was knocked to the ground, hitting her head on the concrete. You straddled her, her hands once again on Riko's throat. The redhead struggled, trying to get You's hands off of her so she could breathe.

"Looks like you're out for the count. Say it, and I'll let you go. Say that NicoMaki is the best." You put more pressure on Riko's neck, relishing-despite knowing that it was supposed to be staged-the look of pain and despair in her friend's face. Riko gasped for air, and shot You a look that seemed to say 'how do you expect me to say anything when you're cutting off my vocal cords, idiot?!'. She managed to convey all of that with just a look. You relented, letting off a little.

"Never!" Riko said in a strangled voice; she was trying to get her breath back after nearly suffocating. You pressed down again, and Riko writhed in her attempt at freedom. There was a crowd around them now, made of whispering students. They were definitely getting attention. You looked around at the crowd, hoping to see Chika's anxious face among them, but didn't see her. Riko's struggle became weaker, and eventually, the second year stopped. You looked back down at her classmate only to discover that Riko had passed out completely and hurried to check if she was still breathing.

"Oh thank goodness...she's still alive." You sat back on her haunches, wondering what she should do now. Riko was out for the count, and there was still no sign of Chika. Movement in the crowd caught her attention, and she shifted so that she could see what was happening. Mari came through the crowd, her arms crossed in what You hoped was mock anger.

"Watanabe-san, you have some explaining to do."

Mari escorted You as she carried Riko back to the club room. The third year had no intention of punishing You originally, seeing as Kanan already explained that they would be staging a fight for the sole purpose of luring Chika back into the school, but she was considering punishing You a little bit for going overboard. Riko didn't seem to be suffering any lasting injury, but it wasn't as if she would be waking up from it anytime soon either.

"So...what are you going to have me do?" You asked, a bit timidly. She knew she had gone too far this time, not paying attention to Riko when they were fighting.

"I haven't decided yet. I'll discuss it with Dia, and we'll let you know after today's shoot. We're already behind schedule as it is." You dipped her head in shame.

"Oh, wait. Did you catch Chika-chan?" She asked, having to speed up to catch up with Mari. Riko was weighing her down a bit.

"Yep. She ran directly to the clubroom. Hanamaru-chan caught her in a duct tape trap." Mari didn't go into detail about it and You didn't ask. But she thought Yoshiko had banned all duct tape from entering the room after Hanamaru started developing an interest in using it.

Chika was resigned to her fate now, sulking in the chair at the table. Her hands were taped together behind her back, and she saw no reason to even attempt running away with her friends blocking both doors. Mari returned, and she looked up at the third year's entrance. You followed her, Riko on her back. "What happened?!" She stood up, knocking the chair away from her. Chika circled around the table to You as she laid the unconscious second year down on the unoccupied chairs.

"I went a little too far." You said apologetically, stepping back from Riko. Chika peered down at her friend, wanting to stroke her hair or touch her to make sure she was still breathing, but couldn't with her hands trapped behind her back. "She's still breathing."

"We'll need her later. Hopefully, she'll wake up before then." Kanan said, consulting the script book. "Also...Dia, please take this a little more seriously. This was your suggestion, after all." The third year in question was face-down on the table again, with her younger sister playing with her hair. At Kanan's chastisement, she lifted her head up enough to look at her.

"It was not. Mari wanted to do it more than I did. I just said we should." Dia went back down, not moving from her position.

"Will this really be okay?" Kanan wondered aloud. She hadn't even brought into consideration the other two first years, both of whom were currently missing from the room. Hanamaru had run away to protect the duct tape she had brought to school, and Yoshiko gave chase. They wouldn't be back for a while, though Yoshiko did promise that she would drag Hanamaru back in time for their scenes.

Somehow, they managed to get through the majority of their scenes, even with Chika attempting to run away at every opportunity she got. Evidently, Mari and Dia had decided at some point that having to carry Riko wherever they went was sufficient enough punishment for You. The second year didn't protest, taking on the burden of her classmate's weight with ease. And now they had gotten to the point where Chika and Riko were to 'meet' for the first time.

"She's still not awake." You reported, shifting Riko so that she could see the redhead's sleeping face more easily. "Do we wake her?"

"We have to. I want to get it done now, or else we'll have to wait until tomorrow's sunset to film it." Kanan had taken over as a pseudo-director. Normally, the main actress would have done so, but Chika was busy being restrained by Dia so she didn't escape from them.

"Alright. Dump her in the ocean?" You was already walking to the edge of the pier.

"No. Let's wake her normally." With a sigh, the second year turned back. She lowered Riko onto a towel that someone had set out a while ago. You raised her hand over the sleeping girl's face, and brought it down hard. It was later said that Riko's scream of pain caused the seagulls to fly away from the area.

"That hurt, You-chan." Riko complained, holding an ice pack to her reddened cheek. It still stung, even with the coolness of the ice on her skin.

"I'm not going to apologize. You slept too long." You retorted immediately.

"I don't even remember what happened. Last thing I know was hitting my head on the concrete. After that...it's blank." Upon hearing that, You decided on the one course of action that seemed correct to her. She would not tell Riko that she almost strangled her to death.

"Riko-chan! You ready?" Kanan waved to the two from the pier. Riko stood up, still holding the ice pack to her cheek, and walked over to the third year. "When I say to, you're going to strip and run to the edge of the pier."

"Got it." Riko tossed the ice pack into the trashcan, then got into position. Kanan signalled to Chika. The orange-haired girl ran down the steps towards Riko.

"Now!" Riko reacted immediately, nearly tearing off her white blouse in her hurry to get it off. She kicked off her shoes, leaving her only in the swimsuit, and ran towards the ocean.

"You can't! It's too early!" Chika shouted, wrapping her arms around Riko's waist and pulling her back from the edge.

"Let go! I need to listen to the sound of the ocean!" Riko struggled in Chika's grasp. The efforts of both girls struggling-one to keep on the pier, the other to jump off-messed with their balance until both second years toppled into the water below. Chika surfaced first, gasping from the cold temperature of the sea. Riko came up soon after, laughing a bit at Chika's expression. "It's not that bad!"

"Y-Y-Yes it is! It's c-cold!" Chika hugged herself; her clothes were completely soaked, and she wasn't exactly happy about it. But both girls were taken off-guard as You jumped in to join them. The last second year had stripped down to a swimsuit as well, though when exactly she had put it on was best left unanswered.

"Riko-chan, let's race!" You pointed to a rock not too far offshore. "To that rock and back! Last one buys drinks for the winner!"

"You're on!" Kanan stepped over to the edge of the pier. The scene had been finished, and she didn't mind letting them do whatever they wanted, but she still had to give them a warning.

"Don't fool around too much. You'll catch cold." The two girls nodded solemnly, then took off swimming towards the rock You had indicated. Kanan watched them go, then turned back to the beach. Mari fussed over Chika, trying to dry as much of the water as she could with the towel she held.

The next morning, Chika showed up with her two classmates. Both of them were sniffling; Riko sneezed constantly through the filming of her 'transfer' into the class. Upon the completion of that last scene, You had to be sent home with a fever, and Riko followed soon after. According to You, however, the cold she had come in contact with was 'totally worth it'. Needless to say, she had won the swimming race.

* * *

You: Come on already, Chika-chan!

Chika: No! I already did so much in the main chapter! I don't want to do a ending card!

You: Give it up! We're going to do this whether you like it or not!

Riko: *not paying attention to either of them* It seems like we lost the position of introducing the chapter to our seniors.

You: Riko-chan! Help me out here!

Chika: Let me goooo!

Riko: Chika-chan, if you behave, we'll give you some tangerines later, okay?

Chika: Okay. *comes in and sits down*

You: How the hell was it that easy for you? She doesn't listen even if I bait her with tangerines.

Riko: She likes me better. Obviously.

You: The hell? She's known me longer!

Riko: At any rate, we're supposed to end the chapter.

You: Oh yeah.

*awkward silence with Chika eating tangerines in the background*

Riko: So….how do you want to do this?

You: Can we discuss the argument we had before the fake fight? Like, why cookies of all topics to argue about?

Riko: I was going to shout something related to pairings, but then I decided that it wasn't worth potentially getting hate over. So...cookies. Because that's a good enough thing to have a fake argument over.

You: ...you...do you really like...oatmeal raisin cookies?

Riko: ...no. I mean, I don't hate them, but I don't like eating them if I don't have to.

You: Okay good. Because I baked some peanut butter cookies for us to eat.

Riko: Can I try? *eats one* Mm! They're really good!

You: My own personal recipe! That I got from my mom!

Chika: *from background* They look like they're having fun… *eats tangerines*


	3. Catching the Transfer Student!

*the curtains open on the room*

Mari: Good morning! Welcome to the second episode of third year corner!

Kanan: M-Mari, aren't we missing some-

Mari: Nonsense! *takes a seat* Kanan, come. Sit with me.

Kanan: Okay…*takes a seat next to her*

Mari: Now, for today's 'Quote of the Day'!

Kanan: Ohhh~ *claps politely*

Mari: "Parfaits are beverages!" -Nanjo Yoshino, the voice actor of Ayase Eri.

Kanan: *claps* Wait, voice actor?

Mari: Shh...I'm attacking the fourth wall. Don't say anything else on it.

Kanan: O...kay…? Um...let's read the reviews?

Mari: Yes. Go for it, Kanan!

Kanan: First, from lychee-ran. I don't really have any romantic feelings for Chika-chan. She's more of a little sister than anything else.

Mari: *nods* You just get the feeling that you have to watch out for her.

Kanan: I can't see Dia and Mari getting anywhere together, either. (*Mari smiles*) Mari?

Mari: Nothing. Please continue.

Kanan: Uh, okay. It certainly seems that Yoshiko-chan and Maru-chan will be getting along quite nicely.

Mari: Even though they didn't know each other until just a few months ago. Hanamaru-chan is Ruby-chan's childhood friend, but neither of them met Yoshiko-chan until high school started.

Kanan: I don't think Chika-chan's going to be leaving the character tag. Nor will I be joining her there. Because if I did, won't people start thinking it's a KananChika fic instead of an Aqours fic?

Mari: *nods* We can't be having that with the YouRikoChika triangle going on. They need to settle themselves out first.

Kanan: I keep getting the feeling that YouRiko will be a thing instead of either YouChika or ChikaRiko. Even though both of them announced that they would be trying to win Chika-chan's heart and that's the main reason they fight.

Mari: They're utterly useless, aren't they?

Kanan: I wouldn't say that though…

Mari: Anyway, next. From Weeb Virus, I guess Chika-chi can be seen as another version of the in-show Ruby-chan.

Kanan: Ruby did say at the very beginning that she and Chika-chan should have had their roles switched.

Mari: But Chika-chi is the main character, so we have no choice but to support her. Everyone of us dotes on her anyway.

Kanan: Even Dia. By the way, I wanted to ask something.

Mari: What is it?

Kanan: You know how Dia's really lazy about doing things? (*Mari nods*) How come she's the student council president then? And everyone seems to really respect her despite her lazy personality.

Mari: Dia's not that lazy. She just doesn't have much motivation to do any thing beyond the minimum amount. But she still has a strong charisma and a good sense of justice, so she does well, popularity wise.

Kanan: And Mari as the school head is?

Mari: … *looks away* Oh! Let's talk about the incest pairing of DiaRuby!

Dia: I am not going to date my little sister!

Kanan: *0.0* Where did that voice come from?!

Mari: Arara? I thought you were going to stay quiet the entire time, Dia.

Dia: How can I stay quiet when you bring up that...that crime of a pairing?!

Mari: *lifts up the cloth on the seat she and Kanan were sitting on* (Dia: *glares at her*) Now, now, all love is wonderful.

Dia: No! I am not going to date Ruby!

Kanan: We...we were sitting on Dia?! *a bit slow to catch on*

*the corner dissolves into chaos as the curtains fall down again*

* * *

"Okay, everyone! Today we'll follow my lead!" Chika announced, standing at the head of the club room table.

Kanan leaned over to whisper into You's ear. "What's with Chika-chan today?"

"We already filmed her talking to me and Riko-chan, and she seems to more confident after talking down on us." You whispered back. Beside her, Riko nodded in agreement. "We don't really care about it, since Chika is more into playing her role today."

"I-I see…" Kanan looked at Chika as the second year beamed proudly. No one was really paying attention to her, but that didn't seem to bother Chika at all. "It's nice that you're getting a little used to the role, Chika-chan."

"Uh-huh. Next up is the scene where me and You-chan go to talk to Dia-san again." Chika flashed a peace sign. "I'm going to do my best!"

Kanan walked out of the club room, joining Mari in the hallway. The blonde third year was watching the remainder of the members play (?) in the sunny courtyard just beyond their hall.

Well, 'play' was the best word she could use to describe the scene in front of her, since it seemed like it would encompass all of the actions taking place. Hanamaru was sunbathing, or napping, depending on how one chose to view it, with her head in Dia's lap. Dia herself was playing something on her phone again, probably SIF. Ruby and Yoshiko were sitting together under the shade to discuss what they were looking at on Ruby's tablet. Okay, maybe she shouldn't use the word 'play' for any of them.

Kanan turned to Mari, a question on her mind. "Hey, Mari. Chika-chan's finally fired up, so maybe we should get Dia to do the next part of the shoot with her."

"Ah, that's a good idea." Mari said that, but she didn't move.

"D-Do you think Dia can act like a fangirl, the way the script wants her to?" That was the real question on Kanan's mind, seeing as Dia was rather unmotivated when it came to her part in the show. Even though the whole project was her idea.

"After hearing about the project, she's been doing nothing but playing SIF and watching Muse's lives in her spare time." Mari said with a sigh. "I have no doubt that she is very into Muse. Like, she may have a problem. A big one."

"Oh."

"Wrong!" Dia shouted at Chika.

Chika flinched, instinctively backing up to the only exit to the room. Her earlier confidence that she had gained vanished underneath Dia's fangirl mode. The second year attempted to open the door, only to find it shut against her. She tried harder to pull the door open, getting a little leeway before the door slid shut again.

'Sorry, Chika-chan!' Riko mentally apologized as she held the door to the student council room shut from the outside.

"Chika-chan, if you can't respond, then we'll never get this part over." You reminded her friend.

"I-I know that but…" Chika cast a glance at Dia.

The third year exuded an aura that was in no way comforting. In fact, Dia seemed to be challenging Chika to say anything more about Muse.

Chika shivered; she could barely remember what she was supposed to say or do next. She tried the door again, with no result.

Kanan sighed. She checked the script again, then looked back up in time to see Chika forcing her way out of the room via the window.

You grabbed onto the other second year from behind, straining backwards with all her strength. "You can't go out that way, Chika-chan!"

Dia wasn't being any help. She still glowered at Chika's earlier mispronunciation of Muse's group name.

"Let me go!" Chika struggled in You's grasp as she pulled herself through the window.

"This is bad." You turned her head to the door of the council room. "Riko-chan, help!"

The door slid open and Riko dashed in. She added her weight to You's. Slowly, the two second years pulled their classmate back in through the window. Chika's grip on the frame of the window loosened. With cries of shock, the three girls landed in a heap on the floor of the council room: Chika on top of both You and Riko.

"A chance!" Chika got to her feet and scrambled towards the open doorway.

"We won't let you!" You and Riko reacted immediately, each of them grabbing one of Chika's ankles. The timid second year fell flat on her face after losing her balance. There was a minor scuffle as You and Riko tried to keep Chika from running away without harming her.

"Cut it out!" Kanan shouted, unable to take the chaos anymore. "Chika-chan, you have to get this done."

"B-But-"

"No buts! And Riko-chan, back outside."

Riko obediently walked out of the council room and slid the door shut again. You and Chika got to their feet, and shook the dust off of their uniforms.

"Alright. Again." Kanan took a step back, getting out of the camera view since she wasn't supposed to be in that shot.

At long last, the most troublesome scene was filmed. Kanan sighed again, consulting the script for what they were supposed to do next.

"Having some trouble?" Mari offered her a water bottle, which Kanan took gratefully. "Where'd Chika-chi and them go?"

Kanan gulped down half of the water before answering. "Don't know. Chika-chan ran off after we finished; both You-chan and Riko-chan went chasing after her. As for Dia…"

The third year in question was once again sitting in the sunny courtyard, again with Hanamaru in her lap. She was talking to Hanamaru about something that neither of the other two could hear.

"Why's she so clingy with Hanamaru-chan today?"

"Onee-chan likes Maru-chan a lot!" Ruby had overheard Kanan's question. "I'm not sure if Onee-chan sees Maru-chan as a little sister or not, but she really loves her!"

"It probably has to do with not wanting to promote more DiaRuby…" Mari muttered. Kanan gave her a glance but the blonde third year did not elaborate.

"Captain! We're back with our captive!" You saluted Kanan as she approached.

"It was a long and hard chase, but we caught her in the end!" RIko saluted as well.

"Uu...there's no point running from these two…" Chika hung between her two friends, firmly locked in place.

"Oh, good. Ruby-chan's free right now too, so we can film the next part quickly to make up for the amount of time we spent on that student council scene." Mari hadn't actually been present when Chika made multiple attempts to escape, but one didn't have to be there to know what went down if they already knew who was participating in the shot.

"Let's see," Kanan checked the script again. "Chika-chan is supposed to tempt Ruby-chan out of the trees with a candy."

"What am I, a little kid?" Ruby scoffed, a bit put off by her part in the day's shoot.

Mari stood in front of the tree. "And so we'll have a demonstration of how to accurately portray this scene. Dia, Maru-chan, begin."

Dia held out a lollipop, getting Hanamaru's attention almost immediately. But rather than following what the script ordered, the first year simply tackled Dia with a hug.

"You should know better than to expect Zuramaru to follow orders." Yoshiko commented as both Mari and Kanan sighed.

Kanan stared. "No. No, I won't." She was already backing up.

Mari grabbed her friend by her wrist. "We need you. You have to do this."

"I-I can't." Kanan tried to pull away from Mari, feeling the grip on her wrist tighten. She looked down at the ground. "Y-You know I'd do anything, but I can't do this!"

Mari pulled Kanan closer, enveloping the other girl in a tight hug. "I wouldn't ask this of you if we had any other choice." She could feel Kanan's rapid pulse; the other third year was far from calming down. "Please, Kanan."

"Mari…"

"Okay, enough with the cheap drama!" You shouted, throwing her scuba mask at the back of Mari's head. "Let's set off already!" She, like the other two second years, were waiting impatiently for Kanan to get on the boat so they could head out to the diving spot.

"See, Kanan? We have to go." Mari tried to pull Kanan along with her, but the purple-haired girl was as stiff as a statue.

"I can't! I'm scared of the water!" Kanan shouted, frozen in place because of her fear. "Can't someone else take my place?!"

"You're the only one that knows how to use a boat! Besides, you won't go in the water!" Dia came up behind Kanan and started shoving her towards to the end of the pier.

With Mari pulling from the front and Dia pushing from behind, and Kanan making distressed noises in between the two of them, the view reminded Riko and You about the almost daily struggle they had with Chika.

"Finally, the last scene." Kanan said, looking up at the space between the two houses. Riko stepped out to the balcony on one side, and Chika came to the window on the other. Behind her, Mari and Dia were leaning against each other, tired from dealing with Kanan the entire time they were on the boat. "Alright, go!"

"Riko-chan!" Chika reached her hand out in the direction of the other second year.

"Yes!" Riko reached out as well.

There was still a gap between their hands. Chika balanced herself on the window, doing her best not to fall off while still reaching out. Riko leaned out over the balcony as far as she could without climbing over the railing. Their fingers touched, with both girls partially hanging off the side of the two houses.

But of course a stunt like that would have some consequences. Chika started to slip; her happy smile turning into a look of fear.

"Chika-chan!" Riko leaned out further, grabbing onto Chika's hand with both of her own. The redhead strained with all her might, but she couldn't pull Chika up onto the balcony she stood on.

"Riko-chan, don't let go!" Chika cried. Her eyes were squeezed shut out of fear.

"You, go up there!" You was already on her way when Kanan gave the order.

She ran up the staircase, not caring if she was bothering the other people in the house, and reached Riko's room. The other second year was getting pulled over the balcony by Chika's weight, and You lunged to grab Riko's back before she was fully over the edge of the railing.

"Ah."

* * *

You: I said I was sorry. *has a band-aid on her cheek*

Riko: Sorry doesn't make the scrapes go away. *bruised arm and bandaged knee*

Chika: But You-chan did try to save us. *bandaged forehead* We can't get that mad at her.

Riko: I know that…

You: I'm really sorry. I was moving too fast and pushed everyone over the edge.

Riko: ...let's just forget it ever happened.

You: *quiet*

Chika: B-By the way, Riko-chan, can you actually play piano?

Riko: Yeah, I can. I have one in my room; didn't you see it?

You: I thought that was just part of the script-to have you fake play it.

Riko: Well, I haven't played in a year, but I haven't forgotten how to play it.

Chika: Why did you stop?

Riko: I had a friend in my piano class that stopped playing when she went into high school. So when I got into first year, I thought about her and then I didn't feel like playing anymore.

You: Is that why you transferred here? To play again?

Riko: Yeah. I ended up going to the same high school she did-she graduated by this time-and I didn't like it. I didn't want to do the whole project thing either, except I had no choice because it's my punishment for fighting you.

You: Oh, right.

Chika: How come you didn't want to do the project? You get paid for not doing anything out of the ordinary.

*memories of countless chases and scrapes go through their minds*

Chika: Forget I said that.

Riko: You see, that friend I had, I couldn't convince her to play piano again. I wanted her to, because I wanted to someday be able to play on the same level with her, but she refused. *slams her fist on the table* But a show project just like the one we're doing came along and she agreed immediately. What's with that?

You: That is a bit…

Chika: Weird. And rude!

Riko: So I spent the next couple of years trying to get revenge on her. And then I transferred here.

You: But you can play the piano?

RIko: ...I believe that was the first thing I said.


	4. First Step!

Kanan: And we're back with another Third Year Corner. This time, I've made sure that Dia is present, and not being a seat.

Dia: That wasn't intentional. Mari threw a blanket on me and said to stay still.

Mari: No, it was your idea.

Kanan: We are not having an argument this early in the chapter! Reviews, reviews. First from _chi2lyn_ , is commenting on the DiaMaru that appeared last chapter.

Dia: *mutters* Better than my own sister…  
Mari: I dunno, I still like seeing DiaRuby better. But the first years don't show up this-  
Kanan: No spoilers! Next review!  
Mari: Fine...from _lychee-ran_. Yes, we are following the same timeline as the Muse that showed up in Documentary. As for Riko-chan's part, why don't we have Riko-chan herself answer it?

Riko: *comes in through the door* Is this why you kidnapped me from the end card? You-chan and Chika-chan aren't going to be happy about it.

Mari: Just answer the question and we'll let you go.

Riko: *sighs* Look, there are just some things that should go unmentioned, but since you asked...I got into trouble with the Nishikino family security. I did say I tried to get revenge on her, and the only way to avoid being thrown into jail was to transfer here.

Mari: So you tried to kill her or something?

Riko: What? No. I snuck into the mansion and set up traps for her to walk into.

Kanan: ...that's rather...tame.

Riko: But they caught her parents instead. So I got in huge trouble. That's it. Can I go now?

Mari: Yes. *Riko leaves* Okay, Dia. Next.

Dia: Huh? *Kanan takes her phone away* Kanan!

Kanan: Review first, then you'll get your phone back.

Dia: Okay...from _WeebVirus_. Just says that he/she likes the story so far.  
Mari: That's boring. One more, Dia.

Dia: Eh? Fine, whatever. From _FireyKataX310_ , I think you're going to like this chapter. The YouRiko keeps growing, even though the plot is supposed to be YouChika vs ChikaRiko.

Mari: Right? They just keep getting closer and closer. I don't even know if they remember their original argument/fight.

Kanan: And while all that is going on, everyone else gets shoved to the backseat. A moment of silence for the missing first years. *it is quiet as the room goes dark*

* * *

Kanan and Mari were waiting in the club room for the second years to show up. They were to film the live concert that the three of them, as the first members of Aqours, put on in the school gymnasium. The extras that had been brought in specifically for this scene, other people living in town, were waiting around the school campus. Kanan wasn't sure where the first years had disappeared off to, but she knew that Dia was tied to her chair in the student council room. Mari had trapped the student council president there so she would actually do her work for the first time since they had started the project.

Kanan yawned; she had stayed up late the previous night. Business was booming now that they had opened up late-night diving to tourists, though that wasn't easy on her since she still had to go to school.

"Kanan, want some coffee?" Mari offered her a cup. Steam was still rising from its lid.

"No, I should be fine. As long as Chika and the others show up soon." Kanan stifled another yawn. What she really wanted was to go home, but she also felt a strong sense of responsibility to make sure that filming went on as planned.

The club room door slid open and Chika stepped in. "Good afternoon!" The second year greeted cheerfully. To the third years' surprise, neither Riko nor You-the ever omnipresent guardians (read: watchdogs) of Chika-were with her. Chika shut the door behind her and took a seat at the table.

"Chika-chi, where's Riko-chan and You-chan?" Mari asked. "The three of you need to perform today."

"Well...there was a fight…" Chika fidgeted nervously in her chair, not quite meeting Mari's eyes.

"You and Riko fought? Or was it you and You who fought?" From Kanan's experience, Chika wasn't the type to start an argument with anyone, given her naturally shy demeanor. Additionally, both Riko and You seemed to hold Chika in too high a regard for either of them to start an argument with her.

"No! I didn't argue with either of them! Riko-chan and You-chan got into a fight again and now they're not talking to each other!"

"That's rather…" Mari searched for the appropriate word. "...abnormal. They always have fights, don't they?"

"Yeah, but those fights are like competitions for them. I mean, they actually argued instead of throwing punches at each other!"

"When the world for the two of them is so messed up that using words to argue with each other is weirder than fistfights." Kanan said with a sigh. "Chika, tell us exactly what happened. We're going to need to figure out the cause of their argument and get them to make up before the end of today."

"O-Okay!"

 _The three second years got off the bus at the stop closest to both Chika's and Riko's homes. Their plan was to rehearse their dance routine a few more times at the beach; You and Riko were going to sleep over in Chika's room. Riko didn't actually need to, but she insisted upon it once she learned that You was sleeping over._

" _But, you know, I'm really surprised that Riko-chan could actually play the piano well." You said with a little snicker. She, along with the rest of the group, had heard Riko play the last time they were filming._

" _Why? Oh...are you jealous that I have an actual musical skill?" Riko retorted immediately._

 _Chika stayed quiet, thinking that the current conversation was following the normal route that inevitably led to Riko and You throwing punches at each other._

" _No, nothing like that!~" You said cheerfully. "I just thought I should have known that Riko-chan could play piano. Since Riko-chan is so delicate~"_

" _What's that supposed to mean?!" Chika started to slowly edge away from the two of them, not wanting to get caught in the coming fistfight._

" _Because, no matter what, Riko-chan can't beat me in any physical competition!"_

 _Riko was quiet as she raised her right hand up into the air. As she looked up, Chika was startled to see tears in the girl's eyes, despite her expression revealing nothing but anger._

" _Shut up!" Riko shouted, slapping You across the face. "I don't want to hear that from you! I've been trying my hardest to win!" The second year was trembling in her anger, even as tears started to stream down her cheeks. "Don't look down on me, You-chan! I hate you!"_

 _Following her outburst, Riko ran off to her house before Chika could stop her._

" _...stupid Riko-chan." Chika turned her attention to You, but the other girl was already starting to walk away, her hand cradling her injury._

" _You-chan!" Her friend stopped, turning slightly to look back at Chika. "What about rehearsal?!"_

" _I think I had enough today. Sorry, Chika-chan." You continued on her path, which Chika now saw was towards the bus stop._

" _You-chan…" Chika looked over at Riko's house. "Riko-chan…"_

"And that's what happened." Chika concluded. Mari nodded; she had been paying attention throughout Chika's narrative of the past day's events. Kanan snored quietly; she had fallen asleep at some point during the retelling, but Chika didn't know when.

"Kanan, wake up." Mari shook the other third year until Kanan opened her eyes. The sleepy third year sat up, momentarily confused as to where she was.

"Ah...sorry, Chika." Kanan yawned as she tried to rub the sleep from her eyes.

"There!" Mari forced the lip of the cup against Kanan's mouth, pouring the coffee down the other girl's throat. Kanan choked from the sudden flooding of her mouth; the dark liquid spilled onto her uniform, staining the white blouse a deep brown. "That should keep you awake."

Kanan was quiet, her gaze not quite focused on anything. Chika watched her worriedly; normally, Kanan would have reacted in some way or form. Especially after how harsh Mari had been in forcing her to drink coffee.

Mari was a bit unnerved by the lack of response, and jumped as Kanan hiccuped. The third year stood up and started to undo her ribbon. Her face was flushed, and she seemed to have some slight problems with her motor coordination. But that wasn't important. "Kanan, what are you doing?!" Mari shot to her feet as well, grabbing Kanan's arms before the first button of the blouse could be undone.

"My clothesh ish dirty, sho I hafta clean 'em." Kanan mumbled. Her speech was barely intelligible, which probably wasn't good.

"I-I'll go get Dia-san!" Chika said, already dashing out of the room.

Mari watched her go, then turned her attention back to Kanan as the girl tried unsuccessfully to unbutton her blouse. "Kanan?"

Kanan gave Mari her full attention-if staring blankly in her general direction counted as paying attention.

"Sit down please." The third year obeyed, taking her seat again. Mari picked up Kanan's ribbon and put it back where it belonged, around Kanan's neck. "Stripping in the club room is a no-no, understand?"

"'kay." The way that Kanan was still staring at her made Mari uneasy. Kanan's gaze wasn't focused on her, but she was just sitting and staring at her general direction. Almost as if...she were a puppy awaiting her next command.

Mari decided to try this theory out while she waited for Chika to return, which would probably take a while seeing as she and Kanan had tied Dia up rather securely. "Kanan, hand." She held her hand out in front of Kanan.

"'kay." The other third year raised her right hand and placed it on top of Mari's palm.

"Other hand."

"'kay." Kanan switched hands, resting her left hand on Mari's palm this time.

"Hug."

Kanan stood up and walked over to Mari, enveloping the blonde in a warm hug. "Okay, Mari-chan." Mari noted that Kanan smelled strongly of coffee. Her favorite blend, spilled onto Kanan's uniform. It made for a nice scent.

Chika returned shortly afterwards with Dia. The student council president concluded that Kanan had somehow gotten drunk on the coffee and walked off with her to the infirmary to get her sobered up. While waiting for Kanan to return, Mari returned to the topic that had gone almost forgotten with Kanan's coffee incident.

"Eh? You want me to bring both Riko-chan and You-chan here?" Chika thought, trying to recall where the two girls were. "I'm sure they're still at school, but they don't want to be anywhere near each other."

"They're going to have to be. We need to get your first live filmed, and it can't happen unless those two make up." Mari leaned forward, over the table. "Oh, I've got a plan to make them come here."

Chika found Riko in the music room. The second year flinched and stepped away from the sole grand piano in the room as Chika entered. "H-Hello, Chika-chan."

"I was looking for you. Mari-chan says that she wants to talk to you regarding some paperwork about your transfer." Riko paled visibly, but Chika continued. "She's in the club room, so she says not to be so formal. Riko-chan, everything okay?"

"Y-Yeah, everything should be fine…the club room, right?" Riko walked past Chika and out the room, heading in the direction of the club room. Chika watched her go. She didn't know what paperwork Mari had been talking about, but it worked on Riko. Now she would have to convince/trick You into going to the club room as well.

"WHAAAAAT?!"

Chika held her hands over her ears to protect herself from You's shriek of disbelief. "B-Because the school's budget is getting smaller...Mari-chan told me to tell you that we may be cutting swimming…"

They were by the school's pool; You had been training with the swimming club. Now the irritated second year clambered out of the pool and grabbed a towel to dry herself off. "Not on my watch, it isn't! Where is she now, Chika-chan?!"

"T-The club room…" Chika backed up as You walked past her. "Y-You're not going in just your swimsuit, are you?"

"Just watch me!" You stormed off.

Riko and You reached the club room at almost exactly the same time. The two second years stared at each other; You grabbed the door handle and slid the door open. She walked in, ignoring Riko completely.

"Kanan, I keep telling you that just having muscles will do nothing in the future!" Dia shouted at Kanan.

The other third year snapped back almost immediately, "You're just saying that 'cuz you're jealous you can't keep up with me on the runs!"

"Eh?" Both second years were confused. Kanan and Dia always got along agreeably, even if they didn't see eye to eye all the time. Seeing the two of them argue like that didn't make sense, and Mari just sitting quietly in the background made even less sense.

"That's not true!" Dia retorted. "Fine! If you think that way, then I won't help you study for exams anymore!"

"Hmph! I never needed your help!"

Mari stood up, and the two arguing third years quieted down immediately. The blonde walked around the table until she was standing in front of the two second years and smacked both of them on their heads.

"What was that for, Mari-san?!" You and Riko cried as one, both reeling back from the sudden attack.

"Seeing Dia and Kanan argue was worrying, wasn't it?" Mari said, gesturing to Chika. The orange haired girl had been watching from the doorway and now she entered the room at Mari's beckoning. "The two of you make up or else Chika-chi's going to keep worrying about you."

"Chika-chan…"

You crossed her arms unhappily. "Well...I guess, I was rather mean...sorry, Riko-chan."

"N-No, I was the one being rude. Please forgive me, You-chan." The two looked at each other again, and smiled awkwardly.

"There, problem solved." Mari turned her attention to Chika. "Can you go find the first years? We need them for part of the live." The second year saluted her smartly and ran off.

* * *

Chika: It seems that Riko-chan got kidnapped today.

You: Yeah.

Chika: I think it was the third years doing the intro that took her away.  
You: Yeah.

Chika: But we got a lot of screen time today.  
You: Yeah.  
Chika: And lines too. I think I was even the main character for a little bit!  
You: Yeah.

Chika: You miss Riko-chan, don't you?

You: Yeah. Wait, what?

Chika: *eats a mikan with an innocent expression*


	5. Revision Announcement

**Hey guys.**

 **This is just an alert chapter to let you know that I'm going to rewrite Project A from the very beginning. For now, I'll leave this one up while I prepare the first chapter of the second version.**

 **Sorry to cut it off like this but I hope you will enjoy the revision of Project A in the future (if that continues to be it's name.)**


End file.
